A Vampire's Savior
by SailorCheesy
Summary: Arthur Kirkland has awakened the day after Halloween to an unbearable burning sensation in his throat, and decides the love of his life's blood is the only way to satisfy it. After realizing that he is a vampire, the two are pulled onto a very dangerous path—one that could spell doom for Alfred, if he chooses Arthur's safety over his, and Arthur's if Alfred doesn't. Vampire!UKUS!
1. The Beginning

It was the day after Halloween, and Arthur awakens to light through his eyelids and a splitting headache. He sits up, groans, and finds his throat dry and burning. His back aches from falling asleep on his small couch, and his eyes sting. It was so bright out. He hated it, and so he gets up and closes the curtains with irritation. Then, he turns around, eyes scanning the room for his American companion and secret object of his affections.

He finds the American splayed out on another couch, still in his _Pikachu _costume, and fast asleep. His beautiful golden hair was splayed out around him, and his glasses were still on his slender face. The American's mouth was parted slightly, and drool was forming. If it were anyone else, Arthur would have frowned with disgust and scolded them awake, but since it was his beloved, it looked adorable. His heart flutters a little, watching the blonde as he turns over and begins to snore lightly.

This perfect, golden-haired, bright blue eyed boy who had a smile like the sun went by the name of Alfred Jones. He had a long, lanky body, and was more of the type to run for miles just for fun than to go to the gym and build muscle. Alfred Jones was an eighteen-year-old man who ran away from his small-town life in Iowa for the big city—New York City. With the ten thousand dollars he had saved up, a full college scholarship to New York University, and an overly-enthusiastic attitude, he had said a hasty good-bye to his older brother, Matthew, and his parents, Emily and Alexander, and he had been off. It took no time at all for Alfred to learn that the city was a harsh place, but that only made him more determined. He started classes at NYU in September, got a job working at a local bookstore and also a cafe, and met Arthur, who ended up being his roommate and closest friend.

Arthur is twenty-one, and his story isn't nearly as interesting as Alfred's. He had moved here to help run his father's famous tea business, and was rich beyond belief. He saw no need for a college degree and simply put some of his money into the bank for safe keeping once a month. He had three brothers, but he had never trusted any of them because of all the teasing he received from them as a child and even into adulthood. Sometimes, they called or sent e-mails just to tell him how much of a loser he was. Arthur never knew his mom; she had passed away after he, the youngest, was born. His father hated him for it, and so he shipped the Brit off to New York City and prayed he wouldn't return. Apparently, Arthur looked so much like his mother that it pained his heartbroken father just to see him. Arthur was pale blonde with even paler white skin, emerald green eyes, large, bushy eyebrows, and a slightly shorter than average body, though he was also very muscular.

Alfred moans, grabbing a couch cushion and burying his face in it with a deep sigh and the words, "Mmm, yeah, I'd love to go out for burgers with you..." Arthur's heart flutters, but his many brows furrow. Who was Alfred dreaming about, and why? Obviously the person he was dreaming abut had asked him out for burgers, and apparently Alfred would love to go with said person, but who could it be? Alfred had mentioned several love interests over the years and had a few boyfriends, but none of the relationships seemed to last. He never knew it was because Arthur would scare them off.

Arthur leans forward, parts of his tousled blonde hair touching Alfred's. He couldn't help but admire how good his pale hair looked mixed in with Alfred's beautiful golden mop. Then, he leans close to the American's ear, and, feeling quite silly, begins whispering.

"Alfred... Are you in love?" He whispers.

Alfred moans and then mumbles. "Yeah..."

"With who?"

"Mmmm... Secret..." Alfred turns over again, and Arthur is faced with a perfect view of his tan neck.

The British man immediately feels the burning sensation in his throat and amplified more than ever. His mouth opens just a bit and he starts to drool, practically hearing the sweet, red blood flowing through Alfred's veins. He smelled of sweet vanilla, only bringing Arthur closer to him. The Brit is pulled into a trance-like state, opening his mouth and leaning close, un-noticing of the two sharp teeth that were about to puncture Alfred's skin.

_This isn't right. What am I doing? _Arthur thinks, getting ready to pull back. But then, the burning comes back, and he bites down, drinking in Alfred's sweet red blood.

He suddenly felt as if a rope was being thrown over him, and then it was tightened. He could practically feel the other half of it tying itself to Alfred, and he wondered what it meant for a brief second. It was as if he had just lassoed himself very tightly to Alfred, like if the blonde got too far away, the rope would pull him forward after the American.

After another minute of drinking, the Brit hears a groan, and then a screech. Arthur is shoved backward and out of his entranced state, gasping.

"ARTHUR, WHAT THE FUCK WERE YOU DOING?!" Alfred screams, putting a hand to his neck. When he feels something wet, he pulls back, and, seeing blood, screams again. "DID YOU—DID YOU JUST _BITE _MY NECK?!"

Arthur's emerald eyes go wide and he opens his mouth. Alfred screams for the third time.

"OH MY GOD ARTIE YOU HAVE FANGS! WAIT A MINUTE—WERE YOU _DRINKING MY BLOOD?!"_

The Brit stares, horrified with his own actions. But now that he had a taste of Alfred's blood... He wanted more.

"I—I assure you, Alfred, I was not in control of myself! I promise that I would never, _never _do something like that if I was in my right mind!" Arthur was panicking big time, and seeing Alfred frightened just made him even more frightened. His breathing starts to become rapid and breaths short, to the point where he was hyperventilating.

Alfred notices and rushes to his side, forcing him to stand and then pulling him towards the kitchen, where he finds a brown paper bag. "Here, do that thing they do in the movies when someone's hyperventilating!" Alfred cries, shoving the bag into Arthur's shaking hand.

Arthur complies and starts breathing into it, breaths becoming less and less shallow until it was normal again. "Alfred," he says, "Thank you."

Alfred simply stares at him, and Arthur can tell his mind is whirring, trying to find answers to what had just happened. Arthur doesn't know what to say.

"Alfred." The Brit starts. "I—"

"Oh. My. GOD. You're a _vampire!_ My best friend is a fucking vampire!" Alfred exclaims wildly. His eyes are wide and his glasses are lopsided. "How long were you gonna wait to tell me?!"

"You bloody idoit! I'm not—I mean, I _wasn't _a vampire until just now! I woke up this morning and—"

"Wait, this is new?! Oh my god, oh my god, a vampire bit you while you were sleeping! Holy fucking shit, there was another vampire in here somewhere!"

Arthur sighs exasperatedly. "ALFRED! I don't think another vampire came in here in the middle of the night and turned me into a vampire!"

"Well then what the fuck happened?!"

"I don't know! Maybe it's—"

Arthur is cut off by his phone ringing. He groans and picks it up, growling a "Hello?" into the phone.

"Bonjour, Arthur~" A highly annoying French voice purrs into the phone. Francis.

Francis was Arthur's long-time enemy and second competitor in the race to steal Alfred's heart. He had decided to win over Alfred simply because he knew Arthur wanted him, but as time went on, he had found himself falling in love with Alfred.

"What the bloody hell do you want, Francis?"

"I was simply wondering if anything... strange has happened recently?"

Arthur's many brows raise. "And what exactly do you mean by that, frog?"

"I believe I asked you a question first."

"Well, I'll have you know that nothing strange has happened and that things are perfectly fine!" Arthur growls, slamming his thumb down on the end button and then shoving the phone back into his pocket.

"Someone was asking if anything strange has happened?" Alfred asks, one eyebrow quirked.

"Just Francis." Arthur grumbles.

"Oh. Well... Seriously, what're we gonna do?" Alfred asks, looking around. "I mean, will I turn into a vampire now?"

Arthur sighs. "I don't think so..." He mumbles. "At least, I hope not..."

Alfred takes a few steps closer to the Brit, sticking a finger in his mouth.

"Ah! A-Alfred!" Arthur cries, turning beet red as Alfred forces him to open wide.

"Shush, I just gotta see these." Alfred says, running his index finger over the points of his fangs. Arthur could see in his eyes that he was thinking, calculating his next move. "In the movies the new vamps need to drink right away." The American muses, staring at him. "This seems to be correct in your case." He releases Arthur's jaw.

"Alfred, I..." Arthur trails off for a second, thinking. "I'm very thirsty, and if I don't find someone to feed off of, I don't think that I can restrain myself."

The American thinks about this for a second. "Well, if you want, you can... er... drink from me..." He turns pink and his eyes fall to the gray tiles of their kitchen floor.

Arthur takes a step back. "No, I won't drink from you." He says. He couldn't risk harming Alfred. He couldn't risk turning him into a vampire. He couldn't risk Alfred's soul simply because he was thirsty.

"Um, in the movies, vamps can drink from humans and not turn them as long as they don't drink too much..." Alfred trails off, shuffling his feet. "I'm starting to think those movies might be based off of true facts. I mean, it sort of seems like it."

"Alfred, no."

The American frowns. "Well you can't just grab a stranger off the street or something!"

"What, do you _want _me to bite you?!"

"Well—It would be pretty cool to be bitten by a vampire..."

"This isn't about what's 'cool', this is a serious matter! We have to find someone else, because I refuse to bite you!"

"Why? Does my blood taste bad?" Alfred asks, looking offended.

"You're being ridiculous now!"

Alfred turns away. "Fine, whatever, you don't want to bite me, you don't have to." He says in an angry voice. "Do you want help finding someone to bite, then?"

Arthur sighs and moves forward. "Alfred, this isn't because you taste bad or whatever, though I can't see how you'd be offended by that if it were the case. This is because, if I'm a movie vampire or whatever, it's dangerous for you. According to the movies, you could die, loose your soul, whatever else. And I don't want that."

"If we're going by the movies, then those are only the case if you turn me." Alfred says, turning around. "Just don't drink too much."

Arthur frowns. "Alfred..." He mutters.

The Brit inhales deeply, and Alfred's sweetly intoxicating vanilla scent fills his nostrils. He recalls how good Alfred's blood had tasted, it was by far the best thing he had ever tasted, even better than his favorite tea. He can feel himself being pulled into his hypnotized state again, and he reaches forward, grabbing the blonde by the back of his neck and pulling him closer. The memory of Alfred's sweet blood was driving Arthur insane. He wanted more, he _needed_ more.

"You smell too damn good." He admits with a moan, "You win, god damn it."

He forces the American's head down and bites down on his exposed neck, immediately feeling the rope that had bound him earlier tightening. It weighed down on him like an anchor, and he wondered if Alfred could feel it too. It was like he was being bound tightly to Alfred, growing more and more attached to the blonde by the second. Arthur suddenly starts to feel dizzy. He pulls back, eyes unfocused, and feels Alfred's hand grab his waist to steady him, as he is falling over.

"Artie!" The American cries, "Hey, can you hear me?! Artie?! Art.."

Alfred's words fade out as the Brit drops into unconsciousness.

_Arthur's arms were tied down to his body, wrapped so firmly that he was totally incapable of moving them. The rope that pinned his arms snaked around his upper body several times and then fell to the floor, snaking around the small room the Brit was in and into a dark corner. Arthur cautiously moves toward it, eyes widening when he sees the figure of a human starting to come into a view. They're slumped against the wall, wrists bound with the same rope that bound Arthur. _

_As the new vampire steps forward, he realizes the person is Alfred, and he feels his heart start to pound wildly in his chest. _

_"Alfred!" The Brit cries with surprise, seeing the American's neck, which was dripping with the blood. _

_Arthur sees the two puncture wounds his fangs had made and feels immensely guilty, as well as increasingly worried. He struggles against his binds, trying to reach out to Alfred, but it was no use. He settles for calling out the blond__e's name. Tears well up in his eyes, staring at the totally unresponsive American._

_"ALFRED!" The vampire practically screams._

_The American's eyes snap open. He stares at Arthur, then his wrists, and his eyes burn with hatred. _

_"Why did you do this to me, Arthur?" He asks, "I didn't want to be the one who has to do this for you!"_

_"D-Do what?"_

_"Don't you know I have my own life now? I can't be bothered with trying to save you! Why would you make me the only who can?" Alfred asks accusingly. _

_Arthur stares, tears now spilling over. "Wh-What did I do?! Alfred, I—"_

_"Look, Arthur!" Alfred growls, holding up his bound wrists. "Look what you did! You're stuck to me now, and this bond can't be broken until I make the sacrifice! You can't live as a normal human until I do it!" _

_"What sacrifice? Alfred, please, tell me!" _

_"I don't know if I can do it, Arthur. I don't know if I can help you." Alfred's voice is dark and firm. "I don't know if I can make that kind of sacrifice for you." _

_Arthur feels a lump forming in his throat. What was the sacrifice Alfred was unwilling to make for him? What was it Alfred had to do that he wanted to make Arthur into a normal human again? How bad was it? Why wouldn't Alfred do it? Why was Alfred the only one who could? He didn't understand! He needed to know! _

_"Art... Arthur..." _

"ARTHUR!" Alfred's voice yells.

The British man jolts awake. Alfred never called him by his full name.

"Arthur, are you okay?! Wh-What happened?!" Alfred is holding his bleeding neck with one hand and supporting the British man with the other.

The Brit lets out a deep, shaky sigh, eyes finding Alfred's neck. "Did the bite hurt?" He asks, momentarily forgetting about his dream in favor of making sure his beloved American was okay.

Alfred averts his eyes. "No."

"Liar."

"Okay, fine, it hurt." The American admits. "But only a little."

"I won't bite you anymore." Arthur says. "I won't allow myself to hurt you, Alfred."

"You have to." Alfred says, "I don't want you to bite anyone else, it... It feels like betrayal or something." He turns bright red and releases the Brit. "Plus, in the movies, vamps usually stick with a person they have a connection with."

"And we have a connection?" Arthur asks.

"Well, we have been best friends for two years and share an apartment, so I just kinda figured that we had a connection on some level..." Alfred trails off, "I feel like it got stronger for some reason, y'know?" He says, turning those beautiful baby blues on Arthur.

The vampire thinks back to his dream, to Alfred's bound wrist and his bound arms. He thinks of how they were both tied to the same ropes. "Yes, I guess you could say that." He agrees hesitatntly. "Fine, I won't bite anyone else." He allows. "But if it ever hurts you a lot and you don't like it, pull away." _I don't want to ever hurt you, Alfred. I'm sorry for getting you tangled up in this mess. _"Don't make any sacrifices for me." _And I mean any, Alfred. You don't have to save me._

* * *

**_A/N: Howdy ya'll! Yes, a vampire!England story. I know, I know, I already have other stories out that I should be working on, but this idea has been bugging me and I needed to write it! Bear with me, my darlings. I promise I won't drop any of the stories I'm doing right now, okay? I hope you like some Halloween-ish USUK. As you can probably tell, I intended to publish this the day after Halloween, but... Oh well. _**


	2. Cleaning, Alfred, and new powers

Arthur, with a determined expression, ties the strings of the apron around his waist. Though he would normally be embarrassed that he was wearing an apron that was pink with frills and polka dots, there was nobody else home to see, since Alfred was at college. He was determined to clean up the god-awful mess he and Alfred had made last night while on their huge sugar-high. With a smile, he turns on the radio, grabs a trash bag, and walks into the living room, gulping.

The room was _full _candy wrappers. Not one nook or cranny had been left unsoiled by their half-eaten candy, wrappers, and other various things the two had dumped all over the room. With a sigh, he sets to work, trying to go as fast as he can. He glances at the clock. It blinks 1:00 P.M. at him in neon green letters. He moves to the couch. He wishes he could just get this done... With a sudden surge of energy, he sweeps across the room, speeding around faster than he had ever gone. The entire room is clean in what felt like minutes. He looks at the clock. 1:05. Arthur does a double take. Then, he looks around again. Yes, the entire room was done. Swept, vacuumed, and in immaculate condition.

He suddenly jolts with realization. In the movies, vampires had the ability to run extremely fast—could he do that? He takes a running start straight towards a wall. Suddenly, everything is a blur except for the approaching wall. He jumps at it, then finds himself running straight up the side. He's on the ceiling now—his shiny black shoes tapping against it. Then he's going down the opposite wall, and he's on the floor of his and Alfred's apartment. He lets out a whoop of exhilaration, grabbing for his phone. Without thinking, he clicks Alfred's name in his contacts.

It immediately goes to voice-mail. He realizes that Alfred's phone was off, and that he was in classes. With a frown at not being able to share this amazing development with anyone, he looks around. Maybe... Since their rather large living room had only taken him five minutes... He might as well do the other rooms, right? The kitchen, bathroom, and his room, wouldn't take him too long... He didn't dare go into Alfred's room, though. The Brit shudders, knowing that the mess in there would take him at least twenty minutes, super speed and all.

And so, Arthur spends the next fifteen minutes racing up and down walls, sweeping, vacuuming, washing, and organizing every visible inch of their apartment. There wasn't much he did in his room—it was almost always in perfect condition. Ah, Arthur's room... Alfred loved it in there, he said it was cozy and reminded him of his father's study. Arthur didn't like being compared to Alfred's father, but he did like that Alfred found his room nice and cozy—a place where he could always go.

Arthur's room had two floor-to-ceiling bookshelves, filled with all of his favorite books. Most weren't recent, but he did have a whole three shelves dedicated to his favorite modern books, and he was sure that soon he would have to add another few shelves for that manga stuff Alfred's friend Kiku brought over a lot—it was actually quite interesting. And Alfred liked it. Anything that he and Alfred had in common, Arthur strived to get. It's not like he didn't have the money to, after all. Arthur had all the money in the world, thanks to his father's tea business and his job as the owner of the New York branch.

The Brit wouldn't tell anyone this, but he planned to offer Alfred a job there after he graduated, if his dream job of becoming a scientist didn't work out. He hoped it didn't sometimes, just so that he could have Alfred all to himself. It was selfish, Arthur knew it, but he couldn't help it. But it didn't seem likely that Alfred would fail—he was a very promising student, as he had come to New York City and gotten into New York University on a full scholarship.

His phone suddenly rings, jolting the Brit from his thoughts of what position he would give Alfred in the company.

"Arthur Kirkland speaking." He says into the phone.

"_Artie, bro? It's lunch break and I noticed you called. Did you need anything?_" Alfred's voice is cheerful as always, but Arthur notices an undertone of worry.

"Er—I just wanted to inform you of an interesting power I seem to have."

"_Woah, really? What is it?_"

"Well, it seems I am able to run at super speeds, even fast enough to run up the sides of walls and across the ceiling."

"_Holy shit! That's fuckin' awesome, dude! I'm so jealous! Like, now I wish I was a va—Heh. I mean, nothing. Anyway, is everything okay? No... Er... _cravings?"

Arthur blushes. "No... I think I took enough to sustain me for a while."

"_Okay. Artie_?"

"Yes?"

_"I got a phone call from Francis earlier today, and I'll be working late at the cafe again. We can do the movie thing tomorrow, though, right?_"

Arthur tries not to sound disappointed as he mumbles a "yes, okay," into the phone. He and Alfred had planning a _Harry Potter_ movie marathon all week...

"_Oh, hold on, Artie. I'm gonna call Francis and see if I can re-schedule, how about that? I was really looking forward to the movie night, and I really don't wanna have to re-schedule... Again._"

"You don't have to, Alfred. I know you're busy, it's okay. If you have to go to work, I understand."

"_Nah, man, lemme just try and see. I really do wanna hang with you! I'll call you back in a second."_

"Okay." Arthur smiles, pressing the end button. He holds the phone to his chest, hearts practically emitting from his chest. Alfred wanted to see him. Alfred was willing to make an effort to spend time with him. Alfred was going to try and blow off his job just to watch all the _Harry Potter's_ with Arthur.

A loud rapping breaks Arthur from his totally love-struck state. He jolts. He can't keep the goofy smile off his face as he walks to the door, feeling as though he were walking on air. He grabs the doorknob, and is slightly puzzled when he has to reach down further than usual to grab it. He pulls the door open, a pleasant smile plastered to his face.

"Oh, hello, Miss Braginski." He says, staring at the woman in front of him.

She is holding a large pot of roses in her pale hands, partially blocking her abnormally large bust. Her straw-colored short blonde hair falls in front of her bright blue eyes, which are crinkled in the corners because of her cheerful smile. Her name is Katyusha Braginski, a thirty-year old woman married to Miss Elizaveta Braginski, or Liz, for short.

"Hello, Arthur! Oh, my, did you get taller?" She questions, looking down. The vase falls from her hands and smashes at the ground.

Arthur looks down and lets out a small scream. _That's _why he felt like he was walking on air, and why the doorknob was farther than usual! His feet were hovering almost five inches off the ground.

"A-Arthur—! Y-Your feet—!"

The Brit speeds forward, quickly cleaning up the mess with his super-speed. Katyusha stares, eyes wide and hands trembling. Arthur grabs her shoulders and gently leads her inside, then lowers himself to the ground.

"A-Arthur, I-I think I-I have s-somewhere I need t-to be—"

"Mrs. Braginski." Arthur says, grabbing the shaking woman's shoulders. "Just calm down, please." He says nervously.

Surprisingly, she does so. Her breathing goes from fast and shaky to slow and calm, and her eyes take on a glazed-over look, staring into his. Her pink lips are slightly parted, and she stares at him as if she were hypnotized.

"Miss Braginski...?" He wonders, staring at her blank face.

It seemed familiar. Where else had he seen expressions similar to this? He strains his memory, thinking. It pops into his head and his eyes widen with realization. He had seen movies where vampires were able to entrance humans. Was he given that power? Judging by the Ukranian woman's expression, he guessed he had been given that power.

"Miss Braginski, you're going to forget you ever saw that. You're going to forget you ever came here. You're going to go back home, and none of this will have ever happened..." Arthur says, staring at her.

She nods, pushing past him and to the door. Arthur watches her shuffle back to her apartment, nervously chewing on his bottom lip. The ability to control people was no doubt useful, but... What if he accidentally did something he didn't want to? He had yelled for Alfred to leave him alone, go away, stop talking to him, etc., several times, purely out of habit. What if he actually made Alfred stop talking to him or something of the sort? He shudders, wondering what he would do without Alfred.

Arthur glances around a few times. He had entranced her purely by accident. He didn't want to do the same to Alfred, but... How could he stop himself if he couldn't even sense when he was and when he wasn't entrancing someone?

He calls Alfred again, and this time he picks up.

_"Arthur?"_

"Alfred! D... Don't come home, okay?"

_"What? Why not?"_ Alfred's voice sounds worried and slightly hurt.

"Because I've developed a new power and it's dangerous! Until I get it under control and figure out how to use it, I want you somewhere safe." Arthur explains quickly, not wanting to be on the phone for too long. He had more pressing matters to deal with, like how he was going to get a power he had no idea how to summon and with no person to test it on under control.

_"Another power? You need me more than ever, then! Artie, I'm comin' home, okay?"_

"No! This is very dangerous and I don't want you in the house! Alfred, you could end up very hurt or—" he cuts himself off, "or worse!"

_"Artie, I'm coming, okay?" _

"Alfred, are you listening to me at all?!"

_"'Course I am! And all I'm hearing is that you need someone around to help you through this!"_

"I DON'T! I need the opposite! Just listen to me for once and STAY AWAY!"

_"No. See you in a few, Artie."_

There's a beep, meaning Arthur's infuriatingly charming and sweet blonde dream-boy had hung up. He groans, shoving his phone in his pocket. He starts to think about what part of him entranced Miss Braginski. Most likely his eyes, considering she was staring right into them when she went blank. He'd just have to make sure he didn't look at Alfred. At all. Ever again. With a heaving sigh, he throws himself down on the plush red couch. Alfred and Arthur had picked it out together, and, after a lot of arguing, in which Arthur wouldn't stop insisting that he would pay for the whole thing, Alfred wound up paying for half, because that was the "hero-ish thing to do, dude!"

Suddenly, he jolts, feeling something clamp around his wrists. He looks down and finds metal shackles wrapped around his pale, thick wrists and gasps.

"Wh-What the bloody hell?!" He exclaims.

He was feeling dizzy. Arthur's vision starts fading to black, around the outsides at first, but quickly closing in. He tries to reach out for the glass of water on the coffee table, to pour it over himself to keep consciousness, but it was too late. He's sucked forward into darkness.

_Arthur is falling. Black cape with red inside billowing out behind him, his pale hands grope around for something, anything he could grab. But he couldn't move his arms! He looks down, finding the shackles. They're wrapped around his wrists and pull him down with a force like no other. He screams as he falls, struggling against his binds. He feels something clamp around his ankles and finds more shackles around his black-pant-clad ankles and legs. The Brit's emerald orbs squeeze shut, praying that he wouldn't hit the ground too hard. _

_He doesn't hit it at all. He lands in someone's arms. Opening his eyes, he realizes it's Alfred. The American's face is ashen. He stares at Arthur with emptiness and disappointment, crushing the Brit's heart into dust on the spot._

_"Why am I always stuck saving you?" Alfred asks, glaring. "You know I care about you, but I can't do this for you... It's too much." _

_"I already told you, you don't have to save me! I can handle this! I'll—"_

_"You can't, Arthur! I have to save you before _they _find you!" _

_"Who's 'they'?!" _

_"I can't believe you would do this to me. I'm going to have to drop out, you know that, right? To keep them away, I have to leave all of my dreams behind. Everything I worked so hard for. It's all your fault! Why would you do this to me? I thought you cared about me!" _

_"I didn't know!" Arthur pleads, "I'll deal with whoever 'they' is, you don't have to drop out!"_

_"Look! You bound me to you, damn it!" Alfred sets the Brit down and shows his wrists. "Look at these shackles!" He yells. "You're forced to come with me wherever I go, Arthur! You can't lead them away from me! I have to fix your mistakes, or they'll kill us both!" Alfred demonstrates what he had said by jerking his left arm backward. _

_Arthur's right arm is jerked forward by the wrist, and he stumbles after Alfred's hand desperately. It was as if the shackles around his wrists had bound him mentally, too, for all he could think of doing at the moment was following Alfred as he got farther away... He gropes for Alfred's hand, jumping after it as if he were a dog going after a treat. After a bit more of making Arthur stumble after him, Alfred stops and allows the vampire to get a hold on him. _

_"You're stuck to me, Arthur. If I get too far away, you won't even be able to think until you get to me." Alfred explains angrily. "We won't ever be safe until I fix this, and it's all your fault." _

_Arthur grips him tightly. "I'm sorry," he whimpers, "I'm so sorry, Alfred."_

_"I don't know if I can make that kind of sacrifice to save you..."_

_"What is the sacrifice?! I'll make it myself if you can't, but you have to tell me what it is for me to do that!" _

_"Don't you see, Arthur? I'm the only one who can do it! You bound yourself to me when you bit me, you tied any means of allowing you to have a normal human life again to me!" Alfred cries, aggravated. Angrily, he flicks his arm back and teases Arthur, making him grope wildly for it again. He doesn't stop for a few minutes, holding his hand above his head where Arthur couldn't reach it, or spinning in a circle that caused Arthur to run after it like a mad-man, going around and around in circles._

_Arthur finally grabs him by the sleeve and grips Alfred's arm tightly, refusing to let go. "Don't do that, please." He begs. _

_"Why not? It's the least of the punishment you deserve." Arthur's normally sweet and nice American dream-man says in a cold, heartless tone. Then, it softens. "I don't wanna give up my life yet." He mumbles. "But the only way to save you is to..."_

"ARTHUR! Hey, Artie, snap out of it!" Alfred's voice calls.

The Brit realizes his shoulders are being gripped tightly and that he's being shaken repeatedly. He also realizes he's all wet. Alfred is staring at him with worry and fear in his wide blue eyes, and looks extremely relieved when the vampire opens them.

"Thank god!" Alfred cries, "You scared me! You wouldn't wake up, even after I dumped a glass of water on you!"

"How long have I been out?" Arthur asks, dazed.

"You were out already when I got here 'bout ten minutes ago."

The vampire looks down at his wrists and sighs in relief when there are no shackles. "...Alfred?"

"Yeah?"

"What's the only way?"

"Huh?" The American blinks, blue eyes staring at Arthur curiously. "What do you mean 'the only way'? The only way to do what?"

"Never mind." Arthur shakes his head.

"Oh. Well, um, what's that power you were talkin' about?"

Arthur sighs. "A dangerous one."

"What is it?"

Arthur looks away. "You'll think differently of me if I tell you." He says stubbornly.

"I promise I won't. As long as you can't turn people to stone with one look, it's cool, man."

"...Apparently I can control minds." Arthur admits.

"Oh." Alfred shrugs, then looks around. "Hey, Artie, I just got the BEST idea! You should totally speed me up and down the walls, man! Like, that would be so fuckin' cool! I'm _so _jealous that you can do that amazingly cool stuff! I wanna be a vamp! But since I can't... You gotta do cool stuff with me!"

Arthur sighs, unable to resist Alfred's excited face. "How do you want me to carry you, then?"

Alfred blinks. "Carry me?" He asks. His eyes suddenly slide to look at the wall. "Um, never mind, I don't wanna anymore." He says, a hint of nervousness prominent in his voice.

Arthur blinks. "What is it? Are you... Scared of me?"

"No, that's not it. I just..."

"Alfred?"

"I'm too heavy, okay? You'll drop me." Alfred says. His face is red and he looks away completely as he says it.

Arthur is dumbfounded. His green eyes travel up Alfred's lank body, completely confused. Alfred's legs were skinny and long, his waist was slender as were his arms—there was no way he was too heavy for someone as well-toned as Arthur was. The Brit sighs.

"Just come here, git. I can carry your weight, no problem. Honestly. There is no reason for you to be insecure about it."

"But you're always telling me not to eat so much..." Alfred trails off. "I've been trying not to. And, like, eating salads and stuff instead. Y'know. To loose weight and stuff, like you said." He mumbles, looking down at his feet.

Arthur stares at him, now feeling extremely guilty. After a moment of not knowing what to say, he grabs Alfred by the waist and lifts him completely off the ground, holding him up easily. Alfred is only a few inches off of the ground because of how short Arthur was compared to him. His feet dangle off the ground and he turns bright red.

"Artie! P-Put me down!"

"You're not heavy at all. And you don't need to loose any weight. Eat all the junk food you want, honestly. I don't want to see a salad closer than ten feet away from you, got it?" Arthur jokes.

Alfred smiles lightly. "Nerd." He jokes.

Arthur blushes, butterflies fluttering in his stomach. He doesn't even notice that his feet are going further and further away from the floor until Alfred's head bumps the ceiling and he looks down.

"Oh, my..."

"AHHHH!" Alfred screeches, grabbing Arthur's shoulders and pulling him closer. "D-Don't let me fall!" He cries, legs swinging up around Arthur's waist and arms around his neck.

Arthur sighs and blushes. "It's barely a foot drop, stupid git..."

Alfred looks down. "Heh. I knew that." He says sheepishly.

Arthur shakes his head and slowly lowers him to the ground, only to have Alfred beg to be picked up again.


End file.
